Policy: Training and Development

DOCUMENT CONTROL

Author Dr Juliet Cross, Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer
Date	Version	Status	Description
22/07/19	0.1	Draft	Draft document circulated to councillors.
01/08/19	1.0	Final	Document approved at Council Meeting with amendmentsheld on 1 August 2019 (Minute: 19.xxx)
Review Cycle Every four years at the Annual Meeting of the Council after the election of the parish councillors or in response to new or amended statutory requirements. Next review due May 2023.
Legislation and Regulation Freedom of Information Act 2000

INDEX

1.	INTRODUCTION	2
2.	WESITE HOSTING ARRANGEMENTS	2
3.	WEBSITE CONTENT	2
4.	RESPONSIBILITIES OF WEBSITE ADMINISTRATOR	3

1. INTRODUCTION

Chawleigh Parish Council (the Council) is committed to the ongoing training and development of all councillors and employees to enable them to make the most effective contribution to the Council’s aims and objectives in providing the highest quality representation and services for people of the parish.

This training and development policy applies to all councillors and Council employees.

2. COMMITMENT TO TRAINING

2.1	Training can be defined as “a planned process to develop the abilities of the individual and to satisfy current and future needs of the organisation”.
2.2	The Council recognises that its most important resource, apart from its councillors, is its officer and is committee to encouraging individuals to enhance their knowledge and qualifications through further training and development. Some training may be necessary to ensure compliance to legal and statutory requirements.
2.3	The Council expects senior officers to undertake a programme of continuing professional development (CPD) in line with the requirements of their professional bodies.
2.4	Providing training yields a number of benefits: It improves the quality of the services and facilities that the Parish Council provides It enables the organisation to achieve its corporation aims and objectives It improves the skill base of the employees, producing confident, highly qualified and motivated staff working as part of an effective and efficient team; and It demonstrates that employees are valued
2.5	Training and development will be achieved by including a realistic financial allocation in the annual budget, as well, as taking advantage of any relevant partnership or in-house provision available.
2.6	The process of development is as follows: Training needs should be identified by considering overall objectives of the organisation as well as individual requirements; Planning and organising training to meet those specific needs; Designing and delivering the training (where appropriate) Evaluating the effectiveness of training
2.7	The Council expects Councillors to undertake training to enable members to understand the role of a Councillor in all aspects and in being a Councillor.

3. IDENTIFICATION OFTRAINING NEEDS

3.1	Employees will be asked to identify their development needs with advice from their live manager during their annual appraisal or regular meetings with their line manager. There are a number of additional ways that staff training needs may be recognised or identified:  During interview  At appraisal  Through formal and informal discussion
3.2	Other circumstances may present the need for training:  Legislative requirements i.e. Health and Safety, First Aid, etc.  New or changes to existing legislation (e.g. general power of competence)  Accidents  Professional error  Introduction of new equipment  New working methods and practices  Complaints to the council  A request from a member of staff  Devolved services/delivery of new services
3.3	Employees who wish to be considered for a training course should discuss this in the first instance with their line manager, either during appraisal or informal discussion. The line manager will consider, together with colleagues and (depending on the training and the cost involved) with council, to determine whether: the training is relevant to the authority’s needs and/or service delivery; the training costs represent value for money; and, if there is sufficient funding available.
3.4
3.5
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3.10

4. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE WEBSITE ADMINISTRATOR

4.1	The Parish Clerk has responsibility as the Website Administrator and retains overall control of the website. The role of the Website Administrator is to manage the website and its design, adding or deleting material and editing pages as required.
4.2	The Website Administrator is accountable to the Council as a whole, not to any individual Councillor.
4.3	The Website Administrator is authorised to routinely update the website as she sees fit without prior reference to the Council. Examples of routine updates include: Correcting errors of spelling, syntax or grammar and factual errors;Replacing out-of-date documents with current versions;Removing material that is out-of-date or no longer relevant;Repairing and restoring links that have ceased to work properly; andMaking routine structural and design changes where this improves the website.
4.4	Any Councillor may submit material for inclusion on the website provided that it is consistent with this Policy, and also falls within any limits of technical feasibility to upload.
4.5	The Website Administrator is authorised to edit or exclude any material submitted for uploading to the website, e.g. requests from other organisations to include links to their websites.
4.6	Archival material will be preserved without change to the content, but it may be reorganised or re-structured as required. Archival material will be retained in accordance with the Council’s Retention and Disposal Policy.
4.7	Significant changes to the website will require Council approval.
4.8	The Website Administrator may ask for professional help as necessary, subject to reasonable cost limits and prior agreement with the Council. Such expenditure should normally be planned and budgeted for the year ahead.